sorry, awkward way to phrase it … but which artist would have had a way greater number / quality of hits had (s)he not died untimely?
I “nominate” Jim Croce
he was pretty much at the top of his game (and easily on par with a Billy Joel, Jackson Browne, James Taylor) both from the writing and interpretation side of things when he left the planet and had written/performed great music in the few months predating his death …
I can clearly visualize a 5 year run of great 70ies folk pop, like Paul Simon, America, Al Stewart or the before mentioned ones.
possibly also John Lennon (assuming he’d stayed clear of the cr@p Macca did in the 80ies
_> “say, say, say” and that godawful Michael Jackson duet
I’d like to add Amy Winehouse and Kurt Cobain but I think their music was good in part because they were these tortured souls doomed to an early demise.
I’ll add Randy Rhoads, the 25 year old guitarist killed in a worthless airplane joy ride, who had an outsized influence on hard rock/metal after a brief and successful career with the likes of Ozzy Osbourne. There’s no knowing what he may have done with the guitar and more time here.
Probably my all-time favorite guitarist. The guy was a legend in his own time.
I actually had a chance to go see him play at Alpine Valley. A friend had an extra ticket at the last minute but I had some family something-or-other so had to skip it but figured I’d catch him later. That is the concert he died at.
I try not to have regrets but that is one I cannot shake.
Yes! SRV… can listen to him for hours. Just sit back close your eyes and let the headphones vibrate. Another awesome guitarist taken way too young was Mike Bloomfield.
How about authors like Jack London? He died (possibly of carbon monoxide poisoning due to a faulty chimney or renal failure due maybe to kidney stones, or maybe a morphine OD) at age 40, after writing Call of the Wild and White Fang.
Given his long and storied background, I can’t help to think he’d have continued writing great stories for decades to come.
“ …when his Life and Times tour ended. In a letter to Ingrid which arrived after his death, Croce told her that he had decided to quit music and wanted to stick to writing short stories and movie scripts as a career and withdraw from public life.”
Several people have mentioned Jimi Hendrix, and he was the first to come to my mind. At the time of his death, he was already beginning to explore jazz and other forms of music that were several steps beyond his music of a few years earlier. I’ve often thought that the world missing out on his musical evolution was the greatest tragedy.
I also agree with folks who’ve mentioned Jim Croce. He was an outstanding singer-songwriter who would have most certainly taken a well-deserved position among the greats. “Operator” and “Time in a Bottle” still bring a tear to my eye.